It was the second time that day Yeon woke up to darkness. Yeon remembered getting tired around 1 AM, but decided to watch one more movie. Kim Taehyung still hadn’t woken up.

 

She must have fallen asleep during the last movie, because her eyes opened to the moonlight shining through her chiffon curtains. The room was just barely lit up to make things out.

 

His chin was rested on the edge of the couch as Kim Taehyung stared into Yeon’s now opened eyes. Yeon didn’t know if she was dreaming or it was real and found herself blinking her eyes open and shut instead of reacting. It wasn’t until she rubbed her eyes that he smiled.

 

“I just woke up and was going to go but you looked happy in your sleep. I wanted to know why.”

 

The pillow was now under Yeon’s head and the blanket was draped over her. Yeon didn’t respond.

 

“I was wondering why we lived like this.”

 

Yeon wasn’t sure what Kim Taehyung meant.

 

“Like…what?”

 

Their voices were quiet, almost whispering.

 

“I thought you were like me. Hiding from the world and suffocating. But you’re not. You’re just hiding from yourself, but you’re still happy.”

 

There was a short pause until Kim Taehyung finished his thoughts.

“Sometimes.”

 

Yeon let the words linger in her head. She always thought she was hiding from the world too. It was true to an extent. But she never felt suffocated or unhappy. It all worked out quite well for Yeon, so she thought.

 

“Do you feel suffocated and unhappy?”

 

Kim Taehyung’s face was emotionless. A centimeter closer and they could probably feel their breathes. Though his face was so close, there was nowhere for Yeon to go so she remained as still as possible.

 

“Sometimes. A lot of times. How come you don’t?”

 

“I don’t know. I like it here.”

 

“Do you really like it, or have you just convinced yourself that?”

 

“I do.”

 

“Look how beautiful tonight is. Don’t you want to feel it on your skin? It’s rare to see the moon out in Seoul. Don’t you want to look at it past a glass window?”

 

Yeon wondered if she didn’t miss it all because it had been so long. Maybe she had forgotten what it felt like.

 

“No.”

 

Kim Taehyung’s eyebrows furrowed up.

 

“You’re missing out. Get up.”

 

Kim Taehyung pushed his body off the floor and grabbed Yeon’s arm. He dragged her to the double glass doors that led out to the veranda. The veranda she hadn’t stepped out onto for years.

 

Moving the curtains to the side, Kim Taehyung flung the double doors open and a rush of cold air blew straight at Yeon giving her goosebumps. Yeon and Kim Taehyung stood at the edge of the veranda and looked out to the Seoul night.

 

The city of Seoul was never “off.” It was always lit up no matter what hour of the night. It was hard to see the moon, but high rises had better luck. Today was one of those nights all of Seoul was lucky. The moon was bright and clear, flexing its power over the artificial lights of the city.

 

“Admit it. It’s pretty, isn’t it?”

 

Yeon just nodded. It was true. The moon did look pretty that night.

 

“Is this enough for you?”

 

“Yes. Opening the doors, I can see it without any obstructions. It’s just like being outside.”

 

Kim Taehyung shook his head no. He took a few steps out onto the veranda and leaned against the railing as he looked up. Just watching Kim Taehyung made Yeon nervous. He was so far away but so close and it was beginning to make her slightly dizzy.

 

Kim Taehyung held out his hand for Yeon to grab. But Yeon didn’t dare.

 

“Do you trust me?”

 

The immediate shaking of Yeon’s head in protest made Kim Taehyung break into a mischievous grin. He liked to challenge things. Yeon would be one of those challenges.

 

Kim Taehyung started to walk back in. He stood behind Yeon, who was still very much frozen in place. It was as if a feather could knock her over. The stiffness was visible. As he whispered in Yeon’s ear, his voice dropped even lower than normal.

 

“Trust me.”

 

Gently, Kim Taehyung’s right hand reached up and covered Yeon’s eyes. Naturally her eyelids closed and even though Yeon could feel that Kim Taehyung had removed his hand from her face, her eyes remained close. Kim Taehyung’s long fingers weaved into Yeon’s and suddenly they were holding hands.

 

“Don’t open your eyes.”

 

Ever so slowly, Kim Taehyung gently leaned into Yeon’s back as he forced her to take a step forward. Her hands gripped even harder. The trembling of her body made it apparent that the fear was gripping Yeon.

 

“I’m not going to let go. Just take one more step.”

 

Yeon didn’t have to see anything to know she was standing on her veranda. Her bare feet were touching the hard wooded floor, and the knowledge that she was “outside” was making her breath shorter with each second.

 

“I can’t—”

 

Kim Taehyung swiftly pulled his hands away from Yeon’s as he swiveled her around in one quick motion. Yeon’s eyes burst open, and instead of facing the world it was Kim Taehyung’s smiling face illuminated by the moon light. So gentle once more, he grabbed her hand as he walked her back into her house. The three steps that felt like a lifetime away from the safeness her house offered.

 

“It wasn’t too bad, right?”

 

Letting out a loud sigh, Yeon’s legs weakened as she slowly melted down onto the ground. Instead of panicking Yeon allowed a small smile as she looked up at Kim Taehyung, who now looked quite worried.

 

“It’s my first steps outside in years!”

 

The tone of excitement couldn’t be hidden. Yeon’s eyes sparkled and she felt proud of herself. It wasn’t the first time she felt proud of herself, but it was the first time she let anyone witness her delight in celebrating her accomplishments. Kim Taehyung bent down towards the ground as he helped Yeon back onto her feet. He led her to the couch and sat her down. Kim Taehyung kneeled on the floor as he leveled himself with Yeon.

 

“You know Yeonnie…”

 

Yeon was still lost in her moment outside. They hadn’t even closed the door and the cold breeze still came softly floating in. It didn’t matter that one of the most famous men in all of Korea was staring deeply at her. Yeon’s head turned towards the door as she smiled looking out, still amazed that seconds ago she had been standing outside.

 

“Maybe it’s not a big part. It’s probably very tiny actually. But this tiny part of my head can’t get you out of my mind. It’s making me crazy.”

 

Dazed and not fully listening to anything Kim Taehyung was saying, Yeon turned back to him still smiling, and nodded to be polite. But she did catch the end of his sentence.

 

“Crazy?”

 

This time it was Kim Taehyung that smiled.

 

“But I don’t think crazy is always bad. Not this kind of crazy.”